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Odesa Opera House.Author Maria Silich.

Top 10 Outstanding Facts About Odesa Opera House

The opera house is the oldest theatre in Odesa, Ukraine. It is among the famous Theatre together with the Potemkin.

A modern building of the theatre was constructed by Fellner & Helmer and opened in 1887. The architecture design of this opera house was designed using the late French rococo style. The unique design of the horseshoe hall allows performers to deliver even a whisper-low tone of voice from the stage to any part of the hall. The opera house was recently renovated and was completed in 2007.

Let’s learn the top 10 Outstanding Facts about Odessa Opera House.

1. It was Opened in the Year 1810

The first theatre which was known as the City Theatre was built where the current location of the Odesa Opera and Ballet Theatre was. It was opened in the year 1810.

 Its design was created by the then-Italian architect known as Francesco Frapolli. The design was later modified by a French architect called Jean-Francois Thomas de Thomon. He was also the designer of St. Petersburg’s Old Stock Exchange.

2. The Opera House Caught Fire in 1873

Opera House. Author Branson De Cou .

Following an accident of fire in the theatre where it burnt down. A fundraising campaign was announced immediately.

 Later, the city of Odessa announced a contest to try and come up with the best theatre design. During the contest, the city received Forty designs but none of them was chosen by the jury. But in the year 1878, a project of the Opera House was drafted along the lines of Dresden Semperoper which was built in the same year.

The construction of the replacement of the burnt opera house began in the year 1883 by two architects from Viennese, Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer. The theatre’s foundation stone was laid in the year 1884.

 The construction of the opera house was completed on 1 October 1887. It cost approximately 1,300,000 rubles to build and it was named the Odesa City Theatre.

3. The Theatre was Guarded by an Anti-Aircraft Unit in 1941

In the year 1941, when the army of the Romanian was very close to Odesa, the defence command of the area quickly appointed a special anti-aircraft unit. The main role of the unit was to protect the theatre building from any attack and bombing.

Guns were also installed on the roofs of the houses that shot all of the 73 days of defending the city. During the Second World War, when the German army was removed from the city.

 Nikita Khrushchev was much concerned about the condition of the city and he visited Odesa. After his visit, he reported that the only part that was destroyed was the corner of the building.

4. The Theatre was Remodeled in the Year 1960

The theatre which sat on shifting ground and was in danger of collapsing was remodelled in the year 1960. This was after the first cracks in the foundation were noticed immediately after the theatre was opened.

 The eastern half of the theatre in its first three years sagged seven inches and its six walls also started to tilt. Due to these signs Gleb Dranov, who was a former opera singer who sang at the theatre for 25 years, and also worked for five years as a geologist, helped to repair the opera house.

5. The Odessa Opera Theatre Burnt Again in 1925

Odesa Opera House. Author Yakudza.

In the year 1925, the opera building was burnt again in a fire accident where the local fire team tried hard to put off the fire. The stage and orchestra pit were fully destroyed during the fire and the original curtain used at the theatre stage was burned but was never restored.

6. Odesa Theatre was Assigned the Quarantine Fees in 1831

In the year 1831, the then governor-general of the Russian empire, Michael Vorontsov, assigned the instituted quarantine fees to the Odesa Theatre. According to Historian Charles King’s explanation, a medical inspector of Odesa who was also the owner of the Odesa Theatre, once announced an infection among the newly arrived passengers.

 This was when the ticket booking went low and ordered all of them to be quarantined at their own cost. These expenses were used to hired hire major performers into the theatre.

7. The Theatre used Anti-Aircraft and Anti-Tank Hedgehog Defence Systems

This is a photo of a monument in Ukraine. Author Haidamac.

During the recent 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the theatre of Odesa applied the same defensive techniques used to protect it in the year 1941. These techniques included the use of anti-aircraft units and also the use of anti-tank hedgehogs to defend the theatre from the Russian army.

8. The Hall of the Theatre is designed to Impress the Visitors

Everything that is built in the Odesa Opera theatre is made to make the Visitors feel the fullness feelings of contact with each art. The Main hall design was made to impress the visitors with luxury and splendour.

This is because the walls are covered by stucco ornaments. Which has fine gilding that makes the visitors find themselves in a world of light which is softened by the red tones of seating places.

9. The Theatre of Odessa have Tourist Sites

Around Odessa opera theatre there are many tourist places. This place includes restaurants, cafes, museums, and a beautiful theatre square which has a fountain and is preferred by tourists because it is where they like to relax in the evening. The opera theatre has also 46 spotlights which provide illumination of the falling jets of the fountain.

10. The theatre Façade is Semi-oval in Shape

The Main facade of the theatre is semi-oval in shape where its two side wings are from the staircases. The building’s front part is divided by columns and pilasters. It also has a balcony which is located at the centre of the narrow two-tier portal of the Odesa theatre.

The Odesa opera in Ukraine is one of the best opera houses in the world with the most attractive decorations. It is used to host different events all over the world which makes it an international opera house.